Feeding mechanism



Aug. 3, 1943. A. K. BRADLEY 2,326,005

FEEDING MECHANISM Filed June 17, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet l l in 21 48 I o oo Z0 22 o 0 GO o O F 1 O 28 m 65 lo 1 l L Z7 i va Hi. 7

I 33 l L37 38 1L: Q 23 5 36 I m, INVENTOR Z 9 ANSON K. BRADLEY BY Ma[92, 2

ATT RNEY g- 3, 1943- A. K. BRADLEY 2,326,005

FEEDING MECHANI SM Filed June 17, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR 4' ANS01v K. BRADLEY ATTORNEY from an overhead bunker;

end of the drum and through the other bearing 45. The shaft 48 isconnected to a suitable drivcant chamber 52 is formed in the upperportion of each bearing, this chamber having an outlet opening 53leading to the internal bore of the bearing and an inlet opening 54which connects with a passage 55 through the center of the screw 49. Therecess 4 corresponding with the stub shaft Al is closed at its outer endby .a removable The other recess l l, corresponding plate with thefingers so that if a piece of wire be- ;comes caught between the drumand the cradle la, the drum may spring-upwardly enough to with the driveshaft 48, is closed at its outer end by an annular sealing device 58 ofleather.

or other suitable flexible material which surrounds the drive shaft andconnects the outer portion of the bearing with the outer portion of. theflange Preferably-this sealing device means of. metal rings Ell securedthereto by rivets 61. The rings and seal are fastened to the hearing andflange by means of screws 62 (Fig; 4). As shown in Fig.3,each side plate28 is shaped to provide a pocket 34 adjacent the lower portion of theadjacent dislgll of the drum, inorder to collectany tar which may escapebetween this disk and the supporting member i5. A removable cover plate65 is provided for each pocket so that the accumulated tar maybef'removed when desired.

The operation of the invention will now be apparent from the abovedisclosure. The shaft 68 is driven by a suitable'source of power; andthe drum it is thereby rotatedin a clockwise direction as, viewed inFig. 2.. The downspout. 28 is completely-filled with a column of coalsupplied and this coal is .deflected by the plate Stand rests at itsangle of is reinforced at its inner and outer margins by repose againstthe rear or up-running portion of the drum, filling the'pockets lsuccessively as they move past If an lumps of coal project above thedrum they will be held back by the fingers 3i and dropped into the nextpocket.

Any accumulated tar on the drum periphery is scraped cfi by the bar 36.As each pocket passes the opening 59, the coal will be dropped throughthis opening into the gas producer therebeneath. The gas in the producerwill be under pressure, and a small quantity of this gasmay escapeupwardly between the supporting member [6 and .the drum, despite thepresenceof the sealing.

supporting member :5 and the-end disks I! into the bearing recesses d4,but further escape of this gas will be prevented by the'plate 5*! at oneend and by the flexible seal 58 at the other end.

. The screws e9 bear lightly against the bearings I 55, these screwspreferably being tightened only the wire is sokinked that it will notpass through, and the rotation of the drum is blocked, the operator willloosen the screws 59 so that the drum will be free to move upwardly outof the cradle i8, since the latter extends for less than degrees.Ordinarily this will allow the wire to pass through, but if not it canusually be reached for removal after opening the door 23.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is: 1

- 1. Feeding mechanism comprising a horizontal rotatable drum havingpockets in its periphery,

a supporting member beneath the drum having a passage therein for thedownward flow of material discharged from the pockets, means to supplymaterial by gravity to the pockets, upright plates located adjacent theends of the drum and formed with recesses, bearings mountery, asupporting member beneath the drum having a passage therein for thedownward flow .of material discharged from the pockets, means to supplymaterial by gravity to the pockets, an upright plate located adjacentone end of the drum and provided with an outwardly projecting flangeshaped to form a recess, a bearing mounted for vertical movement withinthe recess, ad-

,. justable means limiting upward movement of the bearing, a drive shaftextending from the said end of the drum and through the bearing, and aflexible annular seal-surrounding the drive shaft and connecting thebearing with the flange.

3. Feeding mechanism comprising a horizontal rotatable-drum havingpockets in its periphery, a supportingmember beneath the drum having apassage therein for the downward flow of material discharged from. thepockets, means to supply material by gravity to the pockets, up-

right plates locatedadjacent the ends of the drum and each provided withan outwardly projecting flange shaped to form a recess, a'bearingmounted for vertical movement within each recess, adjustable meanslimiting upward movement of the bearings, a stub shaft extending fromone endof the drum and into one of the bearings, a plate secured to theflange adjacent the stub shaft to close the outer end of thecorrespondingrecess, a drive shaft. extending from the other end of thedrum andthrough the other of said bearings, and a flexible annular sealsurrounding the drive shaft and connecting the corresponding bearingwith the adjacentv flange. 1

ANsoN K. BRADLEY.

